Updated: Oct 5, 2023
This game is a great way to introduce the new graphemes in Phase 5a. Graphemes are the letters that are used to represent the sound. In Phase 5a the graphemes are a new way to represent some of the sounds they learnt during phases 2 and 3.
Start by looking at the Phase 3 ai card and the Phase 5 ay card. Remind your child that they make the same sound but look different.
For this activity, I wrote some words on pieces of card (I cut up a cereal box). I filled the lid of the phonics box with kinetic sand and hid the words.
Words you could use:
Phase 3 - rain, pain, mail, sail, wait.
Phase 4 - claim, trail, snail, stain, plain
Phase 5 - play, stray, day, clay, spray, tray.
Get your child to find the words, then blend the sounds to read the words. Can they spot the digraph in the word (ai/ay) and match it to the sound cards?
When your child has found all of the words, see if you can spot a pattern.
ai is usually in the middle of words
ay is usually at the end of the word or syllable
Shuffle the word cards. Pick one and read it to your child. Ask your child to sound it out and use their finger to write it in the sand e.g. tray - t-r-ay. Think about the rules and see if they can work out whether to use ai/ay to spell the word. Look at the card to see if they are correct.
The activities in this blog post can be adapted and used with any sound your child is learning. Alternative sounds and words can be found in the flashcard packs below.
Phase 5a word cards containing ay: